Date: Mon, 10 Nov 2003 10:16:26 -0500 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: Tyler Bell Subject: Pt. Lookout, etc. 11/7, & eclipse Comments: To: md-smas@yahoogroups.com Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Disposition: inline Knowing that Jane and I wouldn't be able to get away over the weekend, I = did a little pre-emptive cave swallow searching on Friday. First, I = checked the Beavue Ponds are near Leonardtown. There were a few duck = species there including 10 Mallards, 2 Ruddy Ducks, 2 American Wigeon, 2 = Black Ducks and 6 Gadwall. There was a small flock of 12 Tundra Swans that = flew over headed south. There were no swallows of any species. I went down to Pt. Lookout State Park with a stop at Cornfield Harbor. At = CH, there was nothing more than some Red-winged Blackbirds and a few = Eastern Bluebirds sitting on the wires. At Pt. Lookout, just outside the = park entrance across the street from where Sister's Place used to be, I = spied a swallow headed south. I stopped the car and backed up in time to = see it disappear above the pines. I tried to catch up with it as it was = headed toward the causeway but I was blocked by a park ranger who was = talking window to window with someone hauling a large camper. When they = finally separated, the swallow was nowhere to be seen :( I headed down to the point but found the road blocked just beyond the = picnic area. You can park in the picnic area and walk to the water on = either the bayside or riverside but there are No Trespassing signs on = either side. There is no good viewing of the ponds. I walked out onto the = riprapping to try to get a view of the point. There was a small string of = 6 Brown Pelicans flying around the point from the river to the bay and = number of Great Black-backed Gulls sitting on the pilings near the = lighthouse. A few Forster's Terns were diving for fish on either side of = the point. As I headed back to the car, just around dusk, there was a small foraging = flock of Yellow-rumps and Chickadees and Titmice. I scanned through the = flock and found a nice adult Orange-crowned Warbler. When I first spied = it, I was looking directly up at it and all I could see was a short tail = with dark undertail coverts. Then, as the bird moved around to forage, I = could see the faint streaking on the chest and the plain gray-green head = and slight eye stripe. Rumor has it that the point will be open for foot traffic within the next = couple of months. This brings about the issue of access during the CBC. = Hopefully, someone will work out the logistics with park personnel for = access for at least the couple of people who will be working that = location. On another note, Jane and I were driving back from Germantown at 6pm on = Saturday. We watched the moon go from full to totally eclipsed as we drove = south into St. Mary's county. When we got to the Solomons bridge, we could = see just a tiny sliver of white with only a minute or two left until = totality. Then, it began to cloud over and we lost it. When we arrived at = home, we set up the scope and watched it as clouds scudded across in front = of the orangy disk. Quite a sight! We thought this was perhaps the ideal = way to view the eclipse in progress from the warmth of our car instead of = shivering outside and only catching occasional glimpses. Tyler Bell bell@acnatsci.org California, Maryland Wave that flag...wave it wide and high! Grateful Dead, U.S. Blues =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =========================================================================